Quiet Life
Japan"Must hear before you die?" Why?? So I can know what the 362nd best album of 1979 sounds like? Stupid and erroneous. Excited to never listen to this again. 1.5/5
"Must hear before you die?" Why?? So I can know what the 362nd best album of 1979 sounds like? Stupid and erroneous. Excited to never listen to this again. 1.5/5
I like it, but I feel like I’m supposed to like it more than I should. I’ll give it the extra half star bump here because there are multiple songs I really dig, though. 3.5/5
Oh my god she never shuts up. 2/5
The guy is a fucking prick, but he makes great music. 4/5
This shit gives me anxiety. 1/5
“Vienna” is fantastic. Everything else? Meh. I like a lot of the melodies and musical ideas, but Billy’s voice and personality just rub me the wrong way. “Just the Way You Are” is one of the most offensively cheesy songs I’ve ever heard. 2.5/5
Truly excellent in every way. Nothing to complain about from a songwriting, performance, or production level. It’s all very good and I like it a lot. I just don’t have much of an emotional reaction to it, which is why I can’t go all the way with my score. 4/5
Damn, really cool stuff. This was a total blind spot and did not disappoint. What a wonderful, quirky surprise. I feel like this is everything people pretend Neutral Milk Hotel is. 4/5
I like it, but I feel like I’m supposed to like it more than I should. I’ll give it the extra half star bump here because there are multiple songs I really dig, though. 3.5/5
I’d be surprised if there is another hip-hop artist - singular or group - that I like more than Tribe. Best samples, best flow, best everything. Ultimately never going to be my favorite style of music, but I like the way they do it better than anyone. 4/5
Damn fucking good. They'll never be "my" hard rock band, but I think I'll continue to like them more and more. 4/5
Although I don’t love every song, I just love *them* so much. Beautiful voices, beautiful songs, beautiful music. 4/5
It’s all good and interesting to varying degrees, just not something I’m going to return to a whole lot. 3.5/5
It’s very well made and I dig the title track, but it’s just not my thing. 2/5
Absolutely fucking gorgeous. 4.5/5
It's not my thing, but there are elements I appreciate on it. I actually very much dig the opening track. 2/5
To quote my friend Joe, “Good, but I don’t care.” 3.5/5
There are elements of this music that I like, but every song on this record is just too long and too repetitive for my tastes. 2/5
Some great music, but I don't love any of the individual songs and Ferry isn't making me swoon like he seems to do for so many others. 3/5
Started off to be way better then - and not at all - what I was expecting. Eventually evened out and fell off a bit, but still pretty good. 3.5/5
One of their most cohesive records, and featuring some of their best songs. 4/5
Pretty cool stuff. Not inherently enough of my thing to give it the extra half star bump here, but it's solid nonetheless. 3.5/5
Fuck yes. 4.5/5
It’s not “my” Christmas album, but a damn good one nonetheless. 3.5/5
Starts off as strong as any R.E.M. album. Tapers off a bit eventually, but still damn good. 4/5
High 3.5. Starts off incredible. Tails a bit eventually; lyrics pretty consistently excellent, but not as much musical variety as I’d like and Franti isn’t *always* the most convincing. Still, he’s uniformly great, and this was an awesome listen. 3.5/5
Am I likely to listen to the whole thing in one sitting? Not very often, that’s for sure. But I’ll be damned if I don’t love this music, and if I don’t appreciate it acting as quite an important historical document. 3.5/5
I respect Prince, but ultimately don’t like a lot of his music. Some of my favorite tunes of his are on this one, however. 2.5/5
Oh my god she never shuts up. 2/5
Not all the way there with it, but could see it rising one day. 3.5/5
Some great stuff. “Lullaby” is a nice surprise. This is just a style of music that does very little for me. 3.5/5
It’s fine. Don’t ever need to hear it again.
Not a fan of Patton, but some good musical ideas and performances. 2.5/5
Not my favorite style of rap, but he’s probably the best/my favorite at it. 3.5/5
Too long for me to go the full 4 for, but man, so much great stuff. “Gimme the Loot” is a revelation. 3.5/5
What a voice. First song is unbelievable. Love how this sounds. One of my favorite new discoveries, excited to go back to this. 4/5
Some of my favorite songs I’ve heard from this style of music so far. 3.5/5
I will never return to this intentionally, but I’ll be damned if it’s not a solid listen and very well done. 3.5/5
The guy is a fucking prick, but he makes great music. 4/5
Pretty good stuff. Opening track my favorite. 3.5/5
The title track is a true masterpiece. Everything else is great, too. 4/5
Accepting that Pixies are a songs/vibe band for me. I like them - hell, I *really* like them - but I don’t want to return to these albums that much. 3.5/5
Welp, it appears I’ve discovered yet another album that I’ve slept on for too long! Room to grow for this one. 4.5/5
Very good, highly listenable. Unsure why it’s considered essential by these standards, and don’t see much of a reason to go back to it, but nothing wrong with it. 3.5/5
I love and respect Ella and Billie. But Sarah is *my* jazz vocalist. She is perfect and divine. 4.5/5
“It’s Tricky” is undeniable. Of this era and genre, this is the best. Is it my favorite? No. But I can dig it. 3.5/5
Another one I should like more than I do. Otis is awesome, but I don’t think many, if any, of these songs are the best versions of them. Definitely enough to give it the 4 star 1001 bump, but not enough to actually get me to 4. 3.5/5
I’m sure most people think Graceland is the high watermark of his solo career, but give me this one. 4/5
Nothing about this particularly appeals to me. 2/5
Remarkably cool and a fantastic new discovery! 4/5
Not *quite* perfect, but fucking amazing enough to get the half star bump here. 4.5/5
About as high as one of my 3.5’s can be. 3.5/5
I consistently could not tell if I liked this or not. Seems like there was truly an equal amount of qualities that I did and didn’t like. So I’ll go right down the middle. 2.5/5
Loud, weird, funny, and awesome. Great stuff. 4/5
Elements that I like keep popping through, but never consistently enough to constitute true enjoyment. 2/5
Unbelievably fun and energetic. Knew I'd like it, didn't expect to like it as much as I do. 4/5
This shit gives me anxiety. 1/5
I can tell I’m supposed to *love* this, I’m just not there yet. Still pretty damn good. I’ll come back to this. 3.5/5
Good stuff. Easy to listen to. Won’t ever return to much. 3.5/5
It’s very good, just not my preferred Traffic album. 3.5/5
Some cool stuff - her voice is amazing overall and I’ll definitely go back to “Who Is It” - but in general, I’m just not super into it. Very cool concept and arrangements, though. 2.5/5
Their last great album. 4/5
Don’t love all of it and need to be in the mood for Liam sometimes, but goddamn, some of it is SO good. 4/5
Another extremely consistent set of songs from Elvis. 4/5
I really don't understand what there is to like about this. This guy's voice is insufferable. The music sounds terrible. The only reason it's not a half star or zero stars is because it occasionally vaguely resembles music. 1/5
Liked this a lot more than I thought I would. Nice pink energy. Never too over the top. Could see this rising to 3.5; using this review as a reminder for me to relisten. 3/5
Classic case of liking a lot of it, but only being able to get so high because of my feelings on the album experience with this genre. 3.5/5
Maybe my 7th favorite Neil? And it’s still so goddamn good. God, this guy was the best. There will be other 4.5’s that get the 1001 bump up to 5; sticking with 4 for this one, but I still love it. 4.5/5
I don’t love Albarn’s voice, but goddamn, I really like just about everything else. Really cool stuff. Excited to check out more. 4/5
Beautiful. 4/5
There’s some good stuff on here - the title track is a masterpiece - but overall, it’s too long and a bit one note. 3/5
Definitely not as good as its predecessor, but still very good. 3.5/5
Janis sounds amazing, and it’s a gigantic step up from the debut. 4/5
Nice. Borders on too nice. But overall good playing and writing. 3.5/5
Holy shit, what a discovery! Great production! Excellent samples, really cool energy. I didn’t know what to expect out of Latifah’s music, but this is one of my favorite surprises so far! 4/5
He's a great writer. And it all SOUNDS great. But even before I knew how much of a tool he was, there was always somewhat of a disconnect. He never resonated with me. I recognized the quality, but it didn't speak to me. It still doesn't. I do my best to separate the art from the artist, but I can't pretend I'm not turned off by Ryan right now. And it definitely isn't helping me connect with this any more at the moment. A very generous... 3.5/5
Honestly? Some stuff I really like. But a lot of other stuff that hasn’t aged so well. 3/5
Cool stuff. Again, I question how essential this is, but cool stuff. 3.5/5
Liked this way more than I expected to. Was never a fan of theirs, did not like these singles when they came out, but damn, I’m happy I went back to it. 3.5/5
Not my favorite Creedence, but still very good. 3.5/5
There's some good stuff on here, but the humor doesn't translate well and it's a bit musically one-note. 3/5
Incredible voice and some great songs. A bit by the numbers for me musically sometimes, but room to rise in my estimations. 3.5/5
Almost convinced me with the first song, but the more it continued, the more it wasn’t something I enjoyed at all. 1/5
A bit one-note, but still very cool. 3.5/5
Just not sure if I’m fully ready for this. Some great melodies in there. 3/5
Totally badass. PJ is the best. 4/5
Always better than I remember it being. 5/5
My favorite album of all-time. Not a wasted second or note. The grin across my face when this popped up as my album of the day says it all. True perfection, one that will always inspire me and provide me endless happiness. 5+/5
"Must hear before you die?" Why?? So I can know what the 362nd best album of 1979 sounds like? Stupid and erroneous. Excited to never listen to this again. 1.5/5
You know, there are certainly some good musical ideas. And it's not produced as annoyingly as a lot of their contemporaries. They're certainly a step up in that regard. But my God, does Axl fucking Rose ruin this album for me. What a horribly annoying vocalist and lyricist. Honestly, it's a miracle I'm grading this as "highly" as I am. 2.5/5
What a voice, what a band, what a performer. 4/5
It's all fine, but I never care to listen to it ever again. 3/5
Really interesting, beautiful stuff. I need to be in the right mood for it, but when I am, it’s great. 3.5/5
My least favorite Drake, but still very good. 3.5/5
I’m a sucker for these records. Some all-timers on this one. 4/5
Some great stuff. Again, my overall feelings on these hip-hop album experiences stop me from getting too high, but this is definitely my favorite style overall. 3.5/5
Great vibe and sound, but I just don’t think I’m a smart enough listener to be able to love something like this for a whole album. 3.5/5
Very solid Willie record. Love the concept and layout. 4/5
Rock and roll perfection. 5/5
The highs are so unbelievably high. And the craft is *ridiculous*. He’s so fucking talented. It’s just so long and inconsistent, featuring too many questionable tracks. 3.5/5
I liked this album - it will get the 4 star bump given this site’s lack of half star ratings. I will return to it one day. That said, I think it’s more accurate to say that “Bitter Sweet Symphony” is one of the 1,001 Songs to Hear Before You Die, rather than this album being a necessity. 3.5/5
So damn cool. Great songs, great atmosphere. Dangerously close to the 5 star bump. 4.5/5
I like it. Perhaps one day I’ll love it. 4/5
Basically what I expect from them. Bon era still my favorite. 3.5/5
The band is so loud, yet they make no real noise. The singer is doing so much, yet saying so little. There are so many notes, yet no actual melodies. So much effort for such little payoff. Complete anonymity. Example #36 of “why *must* I hear this before I die?” 2/5
From their debut album, they’ve added both an additional member (Neil Young) and an additional star. 5/5
Great songs, but it “stalls” because I think the versions that end up on Live Rust are even better. 4/5
Got “better” as it went on. “Kerosene” the obvious highlight. Will never listen to this again. This rating is generous. 2/5
Pretty dependable rock and roll. Rod’s songs definitely better than Ronnie’s. Not up to the level of the other greats from this time period, but still very good. 3.5/5
I don’t hate or even dislike any of it, but I find it to be quite boring. His flow is fine, but his timbre is unspectacular. And it’s soooo long. I can’t imagine sitting through this whole thing again. 2.5/5
This rules so completely. High 4 stars with room to grow. 4/5
Call me uncultured swine, but I really can’t get much into this at all. 1.5/5
WHO THE HELL IS PICKING THESE ALBUMS?! WHO DECIDED I NEEDED TO HEAR THIS?! 1/5
Dangerously close to 4.5 stars. Perhaps could get there one day. The length did wear on me a bit, but I liked everything and loved most everything. Very cool find. 4/5
I like it, I just can’t get all the way there with it. 3/5
Frank’s not fully formed yet, but still awesome. Lots of good stuff here. 4/5
Not really my thing, but there are some interesting things happening here. 3/5
A lot more here that I like than I’d initially anticipate. Multiple songs I should go back to. 3.5/5
When I’m in the mood for this, it totally hits the spot. 4/5
I may be the only person on the planet who prefers S/T and Tusk, but my appreciation for and enjoyment of this album has grown slightly. I don’t think it will ever be an all-time favorite, but I like it more now than I ever have. 4/5
Tough to argue with. It only means so much to me, but it’s excellent. 4/5
Starts off hot and cools a bit in the middle. None of it is bad, though, and the best stuff is awesome. 3.5/5
What’s not to like here? This is just about everything I could want out of this genre in this decade. 4/5
When he sang "You are unbearable" on the first song, I felt that. 1/5
Probably my favorite Sabbath album. 4/5
A true masterpiece. Top-notch composition and performances. 5/5
Solid, dependable alternative rock. 3.5/5
Another album that I know I’m supposed to like much more than I do, but I still do like regardless. 3.5/5
Not always in the mood for this kind of music, but there’s no denying how excellently this is put together. 4/5
One of my favorite new discoveries. What a hell of a voice! 4.5/5
The “That’s All Right” cover is pretty bad, but everything else is really damn good. 4/5
The best stuff is amazing, but there is a fair amount of stuff I’m not crazy about. Still gets the 4 star bump, of course. 3.5/5
Two albums down for Chic and they are still not for me. 2/5
I do actually like a decent amount of this - she has a great voice and has some really great lyrics - but it’s just not totally my thing from a musical perspective. Could stand a revisit of this someday. 3/5
Yeah…this rules. Not my favorite music ever, but holy shit, it’s so damn good. 4/5
Really, really close to 4 stars. Could get there one day. 3.5/5
Lang’s voice is fantastic. Solid arrangements all the way around. Very easy to listen to. 3.5/5
I like this so much more than I ever expected I would. This could grow to 4 stars one day. 3.5/5
Side 1 is very good, and side 2 is *great*. I’d be very surprised if this wasn’t my favorite album of theirs. 4/5
Lots and lots of cool stuff here. Glad this is my first album of his. Room to grow. 4/5
Some decent instrumentals and musical ideas. But man, this guy has some of my least favorite vocal inflections of all-time. 2/5
I actually really like “Invaders”, but it’s downhill for me after that. I like some of the punky influences, but Dickinson is just too over the top for me. 2.5/5
Some really killer songwriting here. It's not my favorite album of all-time by any means, but I can definitely return to this one. 3.5/5
Greg Lake has the perfect voice for this genre, and the production/arrangements/instrument choices on here are all I want from a prog record. 4/5
I much prefer Björk in this environment. It’d be the full four stars if the male singer wasn’t there. 3.5/5
Perfect performance. No notes. 5/5
The title track is fantastic. The rest is all pretty good. 3.5/5
I just don't get this genre at all. I don't like the tones of the instruments, the overall sound, the singing...it's just not for me, I guess. 2/5
I need to be in the right mood for it, but when I am, it kicks major ass. 4/5
Part #826 of “I know I should like this even more.” Still, a very high 3.5. Great stuff. 3.5/5